<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Forceful Decisions by AwkwardBlueFish</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28254930">Forceful Decisions</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/AwkwardBlueFish/pseuds/AwkwardBlueFish'>AwkwardBlueFish</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Batfamily - Fandom, DC - Fandom</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Gen, Hurt No Comfort, Kidnapping, They all need hugs, Tim Drake Needs a Hug, Torture, they all need a break</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 19:27:16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,356</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28254930</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/AwkwardBlueFish/pseuds/AwkwardBlueFish</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“Decide.”</p><p>The voice echos in the concrete chamber, words bouncing off the walls and reminding them all how dire this situation really was.</p><p>Tim swallows, blood stained lips stretched into a snarl. He wouldn’t choose one of his siblings to die. But how much longer could they last?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Tim Drake &amp; Jason Todd &amp; Damian Wayne &amp; Duke Thomas &amp; Dick Grayson &amp; Cassandra Cain</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>151</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Forceful Decisions</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is from the Whumptober challenge. I’m really proud of this so I thought I’d share it by itself!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Decide.”</p><p>The voice echos in the concrete chamber, words bouncing off the walls and reminding them all how dire this situation really was.</p><p>“No,” Dick spits, eyebrows furrowed and jaw clenched so tight his teeth rattled.</p><p>Theres no camera in sight, no window or door to give them an easy escape. The only way out was behind the twenty-four by twenty inch sealed steel door.</p><p>The cracky static of the intercom bounces off the walls and Tim instantaneously curls his legs around Damian and hunches his body over. Damian lets out a choked whimper, and it sounds so real that his stomach curls and he bears his teeth at the room. They had to play the attacker, they weren’t vigilantes at the moment. They were people, very vulnerable ones. They had to fake it.</p><p>Tim thinks they’ve done faking though. It’s been twenty four hours and every hour without a decision one of them gets pulled out the room. The walls are thick but it doesn’t stop the screams.</p><p>No matter how hard they thought, how hard they clung to the person being pulled away it never helped. At all. They still got dragged by their shackles while the others thought against their chains. Away from the comfort of each other and to a torture they were all getting awfully familiar with.</p><p>“You have five minutes.” The voice states. One of the worst things was that he could never detect any emotion when they spoke. No regret, no satisfaction. Nothing.</p><p>“No! I won’t let you hurt them!” Dick’s voice is a broken roar, echoing around the room in desperation. The voice doesn’t respond. It never dose to their outbursts.</p><p>Tim watches as the eldest in the room swallow, licking blood coated lips and forcing his body to sit up. His ribs were clearly cracked, broken maybe. The stab wound in his side didn’t help either.</p><p>“Get closer together guys,” he whispers, an order they’ve become familiar with no matter how futile it was in the end. In the end they would be dragged back by the shackles and chains to their respective walls.</p><p>Duke and Jason were together, opposite of the small door. On one side we’re Damian and Dick, and on the other Tim and Cass. They weren’t close though, around two meters between them. It was comforting to have someone in near reach though.</p><p>Cass eyes the room for a second before she shakily gets to her hands and knees. Ragged breathing fills the room as she strains herself, pulling Duke’s arm over her shoulders. It’s a painful hobble, hisses escaping a broken and bloody jaw.</p><p>Cass has gone over there after Jason’s turn, to comfort the boy. Duke hasn’t been through anything like this before. As a vigilante or a boy. He was terrified and rightfully so. They all were.</p><p>“I gotcha,” Jason murmurs, biting back a groan as his leg twitches.</p><p>“No.” Their sister gurgles, shaking her head and dribbling bloody saliva onto the floor below. Dick reaches over, pressing a hand on Jason’s shoulder and shakes his head.</p><p>“You’re knees were kicked in backwards Jay, just stay there. Please.” He whispers.</p><p>Jason shakes his head, freezes, eyes shutting tight. Tim watches his body tense up rigidly before slouching, his head going down and resting on Dick’s shoulder in defeat and exhaustion. God, had it painful to watch Dick drag the man back to the wall.</p><p>Carefully Tim untangles Damian’s hands that were clenching at his stained blue hoodie. The boy lets out a huff of protest but quickly moves around to hide into Dick’s side.</p><p>The man tenses up, clenching his jaw so tight you could hear them grinding. Carefully he tangles a hand in the boys messy and sweaty locks. Damian curls deeper into his side and Dick was too much of a selfish bastard to tell the boy he was cuddling into his stab wound. Idiot.</p><p>Tim crawls over, glass digging into his palms and legs even further as he moves a centimetre further. As soon as he does both Cass and Duke collapse in front of their pile, breathing laboured and ragged.</p><p>“Have you decided?” The voice crackles to life and collectively they all flinch. Tim wonders if anyone was faking being terrified anymore.</p><p>He swallows thickly, selfishly praying he wasn’t going to be the one picked. It was selfish and wrong and at the same time he couldn’t bare any of the others being taken. What kind of person did that make him?</p><p>His times there weren’t even that bad. Cass has a broken jaw and cheekbone. Her right arm was hanging lossley by her side and her leg had deep gashes that still clumsily bled.</p><p>Jason had a broken wrist and multiple splits on his lips. The worst was the face that his legs have been basically shattered only for the man to kick his knees in backwards the next time.</p><p>Duke had his back burnt up. There was multiple burns on him from boiling metal being pressed against his skin. Not only that, both of his shoulders were out of their sockets.</p><p>Damian has both his ankles broken, his face repeatedly punched and a horribly deep cut in his left arm.</p><p>Dick had also been repeatedly punched in the face. Both his eyes were dark purple, nearing to black. All of his fingers have been smashed with a hammer and one of his ankles is broken.</p><p>Compared to them Tim was fine. The man had taken his shoes off and commanded him to walk on shatter glass. Tim has but he had been too slow. The shackles around his wrist launched him into the sharp embrace of glass and had dragged his broken body along it. He also got a beating to the face, enough that the cuts in his gums were still leaking and tasting of copper.</p><p>Jason was the one to answer. “Fuck You!” He roars, spit flying from his lips and blood spraying on his cargo pants.</p><p>They don’t get a response. Not a worded one at least. The shackles around their wrists and ankles snap to the ground.</p><p>Tim curses, stomach slamming against concrete and ankle twisting at the angle he’s pulled back. His chin slams and drags across the pavement and a howl forces its way past his lips as his nose shatters. Tears spill down his cheek as a whimper escapes his throat.</p><p>Jason screams bloody murder, crying out in pure agony that Tim just wants to cut his own ears off with glass. Dick yells as Damian is pulled from him with a sharp cry and Cass grunts as her back slams onto the wall just beside him. Duke curses and grunts when he’s yanked back next to Jason.</p><p>Gnawing on the inside of his cheek he curses, squeezing his eyes tightly shut and resting his heated forehead onto the concrete.</p><p>“You did not decide,” the voice says and Tim shivers, shaking his head on the ground. “Someone will be punished.”</p><p>Metal grinding fills the walls and Tim snaps his head up at Duke’s downright petrified filled screech. The shackles around his wrist drag the boy towards the secure door without any mercy for his wounds.</p><p>His body twists at the change of angle and Duke howls, tears spilling down his cheeks as broken arms are pulled.</p><p>“Fuck, stop it!” Jason yells, voice desperate as he fights against the restraints. His arms reach to grab at Duke and he howls in utter agony as his legs move in response.</p><p>Cass gurgles, eyes dark and flashing a furious charcoal as she struggles. She grumbles and growls and bloody spit dribble down her front as she thrashes in pure rage.</p><p>Tim doesn’t hesitate and starts clawing at the ground. Glass digs through his skin, cutting up bone and leaving a trail of dark red blood. It hurts so much but he uses it to his advantage, using the glass to get leverage and to pull himself forward. If he just got that bit further, reached just a little more he could get a hold of Duke. Hold onto him tight and never let him go.</p><p>“Take me!” Dick screeches, ocean eyes wild as they scan the room. “Just take me instead! Don’t hurt him!”</p><p>Duke isn’t going easily however. His boots scrape against concrete, desperately searching for something to grip onto. It doesn’t work, his shoes slipping on fresh blood and feces but he keeps trying, scraping the soles of his shoes so hard the rubber starts to burn up. The smell mingles with the other putrid smells and creates something gag worthy.</p><p>“Duke!” Tim calls, voice hoarse and wrecked. Duke eyes snap to his and he stretches his fingers out despite the grimace on his face.</p><p>Their fingers touch and Tim forces himself to crawl just that bit further. He clamps his palms around Dukes wrist and holds on tight. The boy cries out, bones jostling and glass digging into his skin from Tim’s palm.</p><p>Tim clenches his teeth, holding on tight as his brothers body begins to rotate on the floor, the shackles on his ankles now doing most of the pulling.</p><p>“Just hold on,” Tim whispers, desperate and pleading. Duke nods, a sharp cry leaving his lips as his legs pop out their sockets at the pressure. “No!”</p><p>Suddenly Duke is ripped from him with a cry. Tim yells but his shackles are pulled and he slams into the wall, concrete trembling under his back and flakes falling into his hair and wounds.</p><p>He watches helplessly, ears buzzing and bleeding as Duke claws at the ground, mouth open wide and stretched in horror. The small door opens up, slamming as soon as Duke is pulled behind.</p><p>“Damnit!” Jason roars, slamming his fist onto the concrete and sagging against the cool floor.</p><p>Damian lets out a sob, hiccuping. Tim watches as a Dick begins crawling towards the boy, both of them being attached to the same wall.</p><p>Tim follows suit, knowing the shackles were loose now. He crawls towards them, hearing chains clink in the distance as Cass and Jason follow.</p><p>The screams start abruptly and Tim shivers, nearly collapsing to the floor then and there. Instead he swallows, and forces himself to keep shuffling forward.</p><p>Eventually all of them surround the youngest. Jason and Dick are on the sides of the boy, since they were the closest. Cass and Tim, being chained to the same wall, lean into eachother and Jason’s side.</p><p>“We need to make a decision.” Dick whispers, voice washed out. The screams have stopped now. Not because the bastard was done with Duke. No, the screams have stopped because he didn’t have any energy left.</p><p>“You saying we pick one of us to die?!” Jason snaps, head wrenching up from Damian’s sweaty locks.</p><p>“What choice do we have?!” Dick retorts, face flushing a splotchy red. “We have to do something or this is just going to keep happening. At this rate all of us are just going to die anyway!”</p><p>Damian curls into himself and Cass reaches over, placing a gentle hand on the small of his back. Tim leans into her side, exhausted but offering any support possible.</p><p>“Then what the hell do you suggest?! Just choosing one of us to be slaughtered?!” He growls and Tim flinches. Cass does to and Tim sees Damian’s skin jump under the fabric of his shirt at the shout.</p><p>“It’s the only option! We’ve tried everything else! I don’t want anyone to die but what else can we do?!” Dick yells, tears pricking at the corner of his eyes and leaking down his cheeks.</p><p>“I suggest not dying for one! I’ve been there and it’s not fucking fun!” Jason snarls, spit flying past his lips. Tim watches his body trembles in rage and, more importantly fear.</p><p>“Just because you were so damn easy to kill!” Jason goes still as a statue and Tim swallows thickly. Cass has gone scarily still and Damian’s hitch of breath echoes in the suddenly silent room.</p><p>No one says anything. Dick looks horrified, eyes wide and shoulders hunching to his ears. Cass works her jaw, desperate to say something while completely ignoring the subtle swelling of her cheeks and the pain in her shock.</p><p>“That’s enough,” Tim whispers. It’s quiet but in the silence is carries out. “That’s enough.” He repeats, louder and more firm. “This is what he wants. He wants us to fight, to argue. To turn agaisnt eachother. He wants to break us and it’s working.”</p><p>He doesn’t get to say more. Dukes shakles that stretch across the floor start to strain and lift. They watch, silent and horrified as his limp body is dragged back into the room. The door slams shut instantly, leaving Duke to crawl to his spot on his own or risk being dragged by the shackles.</p><p>“I’ll get him,” Tim murmurs to the room. He crawls forward, hands gripping on Duke’s chains as his body trembles. The world spins like a roller coaster around him but he grits his teeth and continues forward.</p><p>He’s staring at the walls now. It’s silent besides the wheezing breaths escaping Duke’s parted lips. A bone as white as snow is a stark contrast to his tanned brown skin as his makes itself known through the ankle.</p><p>Bruce wouldn’t make it in time. If he was he would already be here. He was on a case in Africa, leaving the boys at home alone. Alfred would be worried, calling Bruce and telling him that they hadn’t come home from grocery shopping. Oracle was most probably watching the camera feed, trying to find where they were last seen. They wouldn’t find them in time.</p><p>Tim swallows and his head falls onto Cass shoulder. Her cheeks were twice the size, an angry red and bulging. It kind of reminds Tim of when she got her wisdoms removed.</p><p>Cass still manages to give him a smile and Tim smiles back. It drops from his lips quickly and his eyes trail down to the wheezing figure on her lap.</p><p>“You doing okay, Mr. Wheezy?” Tim murmurs and Duke chuckles, blood bubbling from his lips and spilling past his cheek, staining Cass ripped leggings.</p><p>“I’m still awake if that’s what you’re asking,” he mutters back and Tim laughs softly. He reaches forward, hand resting on his little brothers cheek and rubbing small soothing circles.</p><p>“That’s good,” Tim hums.</p><p>A sigh escapes his lips and Tim gazes at his family. He had a plan. It wasn’t really a plan, not really. But it would get the others freed. It would get Kons attention. It would save the rest of his family.</p><p>“I have a plan.” Tim says softly. He can feel the eyes boring into the side of his face but he simply smiles. “I have a plan. I can’t tell you, you’d be against it. But it will work. It will.”</p><p>Dick licks his lips, swallowing as he rubs Damian’s back. “What do we have to do?”</p><p>“The next time he says to decide. Say my name.” Tim says. He’s nervous but he keeps his words strong and voice firm. They had to listen to this plan. They’d all die one after the other otherwise.</p><p>“No.” Jason says, shaking his head but Tim meets his eyes. Jason tries to keep the contact before he rips them away as if burned. Tim smiles softly.</p><p>Dicks eyes flicker between the two. “How sure are you of this plan working?” He asks and Tim turns to face him. He grins a bloodied smile.</p><p>“95%” he says and chuckles at the various reactions. Damian uncurls from between the two boys as Dick and Jason stare at him in silent shock.</p><p>“You’re plans only usually range from zero to eighty percent Timothy.” Damian acuses, voice soft and desperate hope shining in forest green eyes. Tim nods. He knows this.</p><p>“Always the perception-est,” Duke chuckles, coughing soon after. Cass rubs his arm but her eyes never leaves Tim’s.</p><p>Dick shakes his head but slowly he pauses. They have no other plans and they can’t afford to be here any longer. Not with these injustices. Tim knows this and so does Dick.</p><p>“At best?” He asks cautiously and Tim grins and snickers to himself. It’s fake and it rattles bruised ribs but he needs for them to believe it.</p><p>“Most of us get out alive!” He grins, winking at them all.</p><p>Jason chokes on his spit and Dick splutters. Damian scowls at him and has no trouble reaching over and slapping Tim upside the head. Duke chuckles. Cass’ gaze bores into the side of his face. Tim doesn’t look at her, focusing on the others.</p><p>“Not funny man,” Jason mutters but a smile stretches at his lips. Good, he bought it.</p><p>“I don’t like it,” Dick murmurs before sighing, whole body sagging. “But let’s do it, I guess.”</p><p>Tim’s heart rattles in his ribbed up cage and the room seems just a little brighter. “It’ll work,” he reassures. “I know it will.”</p><p>Cass shakes her head, a gurgle escaping her lips. Tim finally meets her gaze and sees the horror, the relizadtion. He smiles and leaves a bloody kiss on her forehead. The tears track down her cheeks as Tim rubs at the bloody lip stain on her forehead with a bruised thumb.</p><p>The speakers crackles and Tim knows it’s time. “Who dies? Decide.”</p><p>“Me,” Tim says to the room.</p><p>The voice is silent. The others have to agree. They have to say it. They know this. Otherwise Dick would be long dead by.</p><p>“Tim.” Dick says, voice firm. It doesn’t hide the worry shimmering in his eyes.</p><p>“Timbers,” Jason mutters, crossing his arms and looking away from them all.</p><p>“Timothy,” Damian says and Tim sends the boy a soft smile.</p><p>“It’s Tim.” Duke wheezes, coughing harshly, whole body convulsing.</p><p>Cass lets out a gurgle, but her eyes are too busy staring at Tim to show her disagreement. Good. The person will take that as a yes.</p><p>“Very well.” The crackling stops and the shackles around Tim’s wrists and ankles hiss open to collapse on the floor.</p><p>Tim doesn’t move. He watches as the wall with the small door suddenly lifts up. A man stands before them, face covered by a gas mask. There was nothing identifying about him. Smart.</p><p>“Come.” He says and his voice is nearly soothing as he stares him down.</p><p>Tim swallows and nods. He crawls to the man, arms shaking under his weight. The man says nothing, just watches as Tim drives his body to move.</p><p>He says nothing as he pulls a gun from his holster at his waist. He says nothing as he rests it against Tim’s forehead. He says nothing as the safety clicks off.</p><p>The others are yelling now. Fighting against their restraints. They’re crying, cursing him for tricking them. But Tim hasn’t. Kon will hear his heart stop. He doesn’t actively listen in but he knows Tim’s heartbeat. Has familiarised himself with it. He’s done it with Bart and Cassie’s too. He’ll know when Tim’s stops.</p><p>He was going to die. And that’s alright. He couldn’t let Dick die. He was already to selfless. He was the glue and there no way Tim would let that be taken away.</p><p>Jason was terrified of death. He has nightmares all the time. No one deserves to be die twice, no one deserves to be tortured only to die again.</p><p>Cass was an angel. She was a sweetheart. She loves so much and isn’t afraid to show it.</p><p>Damian was a kid. An innocent kid whose been put through far too much. Tim wouldn’t, couldn’t let him die again.</p><p>Duke was new. He had a family he was searching for. He needed to be there when they found his parents. It’s the least he deserves.</p><p>And maybe Tim was being partly selfish to. He couldn’t stand to watch them cry and scream. He couldn’t stand to watch them crumble and break. So he wouldn’t.</p><p>“It’ll work.” Tim whispers.</p><p>The man pulls the trigger.</p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>